The NFC East standings showing the Eagles just one game out of first place mean nothing.

The only real question now is how many wins they can get without a franchise quarterback.

Without a quarterback who makes defenses pay for jamming the line of scrimmage, the Eagles are going to get worse before they get better. And of all the years not to have an elite quarterback, what with the division being so weak, this is the worst.

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Which brings us to this rumor floated at the NovaCare Complex last week: Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie is a fan of Johnny Football.

There’s history with Texas A & M in the form of a report (http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/22403289/report-texas-am-coach-kevin-sumlin-was-offered-eagles-job) stating the Eagles offered their head coaching job to Kevin Sumlin, the head coach of the Aggies and play-caller for Johnny Manziel, a.k.a. Johnny Football.

The Eagles hired Kelly, who recruited Manziel for Oregon.

Manziel is a first-round talent with the mobility, arm and football sense to make those split-second decisions necessary to exploit the mismatches created by Kelly’s schemes.

Manziel also has an ego the size of Texas but that’s not the biggest shortcoming should the underclassman declare for the draft. No, he gets banged up a lot. At 6-feet-1, he’s at the low end of the scale for an NFL option quarterback not named Russell Wilson.

Kelly said it’s a disservice to players, fans and everyone else if he channels any energy into anything but this season. He got a little emotional, too. Thankfully no one stood up and applauded.

It’s clear Lurie is worried about the position. He told CSN Philly finding the right quarterback is the Eagles’ No. 1 priority. Apparently whether Chip Kelly wants to talk about it or not.

You don’t say that if you know who your quarterback is going to be.

And with all due respect to the current cast of passers, that’s where the Eagles are right now.

Johnny Football, anyone?

ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay said on a conference call recently people were getting “carried away” with the quarterbacks in the upcoming draft.

Getting carried away is what McShay does for a living when he’s not comparing his big board to that of ESPN colleague Mel Kiper.

Secondly, in a purely quarterback-driven league this could be the deepest class in the history of the draft providing underclassmen come out. (If those guys have doubts about entering the draft, they should text Matt Barkley).

Listening to the call, McShay’s most telling comment was about the ability of the top quarterback prospects.

“There’s a lot of big names and a lot of good players,” he said. “But it’s important not to confuse depth with quality.”

McShay argues no quarterback in this draft will be graded as highly as Andrew Luck, who was selected in 2012. Further, maybe one or two quarterbacks will be graded as high as Robert Griffin III, who was the second pick in ’12.

Quarterbacks Marcus Mariota (Oregon) and Teddy Bridgewater (Louisville) could be the first two players drafted this spring. Johnny Manziel (Texas A&M) is a top-10 pick. Clemson’s Tajh Boyd is first round.

There’s more quality and depth right at the top than the Class of 2012. And there’s seven or eight other quarterbacks who might be able to win in the NFL.

What’s not to get carried away about?

Still on the topic of quarterbacks, there’s a must-see segment for Eagles fans airing on the NFL Network this Tuesday at 9 p.m.

Randall Cunningham’s life and career will be documented in a one-hour program titled: “Randall Cunningham: A Football Life.”

The highlights, including video of his highly recruited son playing football are chilling. There’s never been a player who could move like Cunningham.

Among others, there’s Cunningham bouncing off a staggering hit by linebacker Carl Banks and throwing a touchdown pass to Jimmie Giles to help beat the Giants.

“If Randall Cunningham were to play in today’s NFL, he would in my opinion make Robert Griffin III and Michael Vick look second-tier to him,” Banks testified during the program. “I would put him against those guys, and it wouldn’t even be close.”

Cunningham threw for 29,979 yards and 207 touchdowns and ran for 4,928 yards and 35 touchdowns in a prodigious 16-year career that included sparking the Minnesota Vikings to a 15-1 record in 1998. The Vikings’ ride through the playoffs ended one missed field goal short of the Super Bowl.

Cunningham was 82-52-1 as a starter, including 63-43-1 with the Eagles. He retired as an Eagle in 2002.

“Randall probably did it more dramatically and more spectacularly,” said Merrill Reese, the voice of the Eagles, “Than any other quarterback before or since.”

NOTES: Cornerback Terrell Thomas was named NFC defensive player of the week after sparking the Giants to a 15-7 win over the Eagles. Thomas contributed a career-high 11 tackles, one pass broken up and a forced fumble on Matt Barkley blowing up a first-and-goal at the 2-yard line late in the first half … The AFC defensive player of the week was Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, formerly of the Eagles. DRC had five tackles, including one for a loss, broke up three passes and returned an interception 75 yards for a score to spark the Broncos to a 45-21 win over the Redskins. Rodgers-Cromartie has taken five picks to the house (none with the Eagles). All but three of his 18 interceptions came with teams other than the Birds.

To contact Bob Grotz, email bgrotz@delcotimes.com. Follow him at www.Twitter.com/bobgrotz.